Know Thy Hustle

Out of curiosity, I recently had my resume reviewed by a company specializing in such craft. Now, based on previous in-depth meetings with graduate career centers, I felt relatively confident in, at least, how I presented some of my past skills and experiences.

However, whether due to a different set of expectations or in the interest of hooking my wallet, the company whittled away at my resume, poking holes in both the format and my ultimately deflated ego. One of the most telling pieces of feedback I received went along the lines of, "Your resume includes a multitude of accolades but employers aren't interested in 'doers,' they're primarily interested in results and effects of your actions." Which, arguably is probably quite accurate in several fields. Now, compare that to what I heard from an employer of a (rather sketchy) multilevel management company a few days ago. "The way, I see it, you have one of two options. You can work at a dead end 9-5 job during the prime of your life or you can work for us and make it up the ladder in a matter of months by working 6 days a week." After considering the context and extent expressed by both of these statements, I eventually concluded that both speakers seemed pretty one dimensional.

Let's de-bunk the resume builder advice first and foremost. I would argue that in the end, results do matter to an extent. Humor me for a second, though, and imagine you worked as a determined firefighter in a highly populated urban area. You are running towards danger every single 911 phone call you receive with a highly dedicated team. Despite your best efforts, no matter how fast you arrive at the scene, there might be casualties. The fire may have burned too hot too fast or even if you made it in and sheltered someone from the flames, perhaps their condition was too dire for the ER. Results are not just quantitative - they should be seen as a qualitative factor as well. What was the heart and intention behind each action? If the firefighting example proves a stretch for the more corporate world, say you are a financial analyst. Several of your compatriots speed through clients giving them the same rote, one-size-fits-most advice. You instead take a more personalized approach to thoroughly go over questions with each client until they leave glowing. Granted, your coworkers might have more numbers or "results," but you would have higher quality client relationships. Numbers aren't everything, as tempting as that over-generalization might seem. It's never what you do, it's how you do the work. Did you take the time and effort to look after your goals?

In regards to the sketchy employer with the work harder or smarter comparison - I actually told him this was a false duality. Even in a traditional 9-5 position, you have potential and opportunities to make a difference, however small. When I was a middle school student, I spent about an hour outside of class each week working with a music graduate student on flute techniques. This personalized interaction for a minute amount of time felt far more productive than sitting in band every single day working with the other woodwinds. You might say we worked exorbitantly harder in band than I ever did at my flute lesson. However, it was my tutor that inspired me to keep practicing and find joy in practice - it wasn't the daily grind but the occasional spark of why music matters that kept me going.

During my first year of graduate school, I worked alongside a makerspace in the local library. The mentors there in STEM and design fields didn't spend as much time with students as local schools did, but students would always come in voluntarily to work on passion projects: podcasts, spoken word, broadcasting, photography, and robotics. Adolescents were enamored and engaged far more than in a traditional classroom and exhibited most of the critical thinking skills test-makers long to leech out through standards-based learning. The different wasn't in the rigor; the different was the passion.

As I embark on discovering my own passion for the hustle, I'm continually fascinated by how others wonder about their own professions. The two encounters I had above weren't necessarily negative - they just made me really curious about the distinct perceptions of how we each see the world. For some, it means ticking boxes, getting a paycheck, or launching into the atmosphere of a new career by the skin of your teeth. For me, I think I'm always more intrigued by the flip-side of commonly held beliefs and opinions. Why are these sociocultural norms and rules in play? I see this question as crucial to breaking down blind faithfulness to an occupation. Just like the widely held advice to "know thyself," I believe you have to know your purpose, professional or otherwise, each day.